Community Pharmacy in 2016/17 and beyond

The Department of Health (DofH) has announced plans to reduce funding in 2016/17 for Community Pharmacies in England from £2.8 billion to £2.63 billion following the Governments Spending Review and the need for the NHS to deliver £22 billion in efficiency savings by 2020/21.

The DofH believes that there is real potential for far greater use of community pharmacy and pharmacists: in prevention of ill health; support for healthy living; support for self-care for minor ailments and long term conditions; medication reviews in care homes; and as part of more integrated local care models and to this end, believes that we need a clinically focused community pharmacy service that is better integrated with primary care. This will help relieve the pressure on GPs and Accident and Emergency Departments, ensure optimal use of medicines, better value and better patient outcomes, and contribute to delivering seven-day health and care services.

The DofH wants pharmacists to bring their skills more to GP practices, care homes and urgent care, using those opportunities to improve and protect people’s health, aligning with the emerging new models of care.

Making efficiencies, as well as providing more effective patient and public friendly services, community pharmacy also has to play its part in delivering the efficiencies required by the Government’s recently published Spending Review and to support the need for greater efficiency and productivity as outlined in the Five Year Forward View. This will involve reductions in NHS funding for community pharmacies in England.

More detailed information can be found on the Department of Health’s website